EVERY year, Wokingham MP Clive Jones launches a children’s competition to design the image for his official Christmas card.
To be delivered to 40,000 addresses, the design on this year’s card has been created by talented six year old Evelyn-Mae Smith.
She met with the MP at First Days Charity’s Elevate Centre in Wokingham, where her mum, Rachel works as logistics manager.
With her mum and dad and Clive, she chatted about how many cards she would be willing to deliver, enthusiastically offering to post all 40,000.
She will have an opportunity to deliver some locally, (although not 40,000 of course) and said she also looks forward to showing them to her younger brother and sister.
A pupil at St Cecilia’s Primary School, Evelyn had put plenty of detail into her drawing, which is what prompted Clive to choose it for his official Westminster Christmas card design.
“There’s so much in it,” he said, “Evelyn has included Santa, snow, Rudolph, a snowman and a Christmas tree.”
Apparently, the drawing took her all of five minutes to complete.
“She loves drawing,” said Rachel, “and we have her pictures all round the house.
“She loves to help out when we run craft sessions at The Elevate Centre.”
Evelyn is especially excited that, having won the design competition, she will be invited on December 10, to join Clive at Westminster, the ‘mother of parliaments’.
“She hasn’t stopped talking about it,” said her dad, Ben, “ and has been asking about what politicians do.”
Clive said: “Evelyn has obviously really enjoyed creating the design, and winning.
“I run this competition because I think it’s really good to engage with young children, so that they have a small idea of what an MP does, and how they represent the community.
“Hopefully youngsters who take part, and their friends, will develop an interest in politics, and share their views with politicians.
“Voting is so important, both locally, and in general elections.
“But so many youngsters, in recent years, have been disengaged with politics, so if this initiative helps to give children a bit of interest in politics, that’s good.
“And, of course, it is fun too.”
The first thing Evelyn did when she received her certificate was to carefully draw a heart on it – her perfect comment on an event that had evidently made her feel very happy.
“We’ll frame this, and put it on the wall,” said Ben and Rachel.
